CHARACTERIZATION OF RAHNELLA AQUATILIS ENDOTOXINS (LIPOPOLYSACCHARIDES)

N.V. Vinarskaya, L.B. Scoclyuk, L.D. Varbanets

Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) of 2 Rahnella aquatilis strains 95U003 and 95U004 were isolated. It was established that the predominant monosaccharides of LPS were galactose (28,3 and 33,9%), mannose (35,6 and 30,1%) and glucose (25,4 and 21,7%) (strains 95U003 and 95U004, respectively). DS-Na-PAAG electrophoresis of LPS strains tested showed a typical for S-LPS bimodal distribution. LPS in bacterial cells represented heterogenous population, which included two main types of molecules: high-molecular mass S-LPS with O-chains of different length and low-molecular R-LPS, which didn't contain O-specific polysaccharide chains. In the reactions of double immunodiffusion in agar by Ouchterlony, immunoelectrophoresis and rocket immunoelectrophoresis LPS of strains tested cross reacted with antiserum to type R. aquatilis strain ATCC 33071. It indicated the presence of commom antigenic determinants, i.e. anout belonging of R. aquatilis strains 95U003 and 95U004 to one and the same serogroup as type strain.

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